now reading

If you are planning on going to see the new movie Holes, do yourself a favor. Read the book first.

Sure it's a "kid's" book, but that didn't stop me from thoroughly enjoying it. In fact, I read a kid's book at least every two weeks, ranging from fourth grade adventure mysteries to high school teen angst books. They're good for your soul.

1. Tuesday (AWESOME picture book!)
2. Lost Souls, Drawing Blood and Wormwood by Poppy Z. Brite (not exactly "kid" reading due to the rampant drug use and homoerotica, but the writing is excellent--it even caused me to have a few flashbacks!)
3. A Cricket in Times Square
4. The Melancholy Death of Oyster Boy (Poems by Tim Burton)
5. The Stinky Cheese Man (Re-written stories of The Ugly Duckling, etc.)
6. And You Give Me a Pain, Elaine!
7. Any Christopher Pike book
8. Everything by Shel Silverstein

It took lots of posts before someone mentioned Harriet the Spy. Surprised. Of those that no one's mentioned yet, The House with a Clock in Its Walls by John Bellairs and (of course) a great big single-volume edition of the Brothers' Grimm's fairy tales are great unsettling antidotes to afterschool specials. And I had a book-record set with Carol Channing reading three of Ludwig Bemelmans's Madeline books. I still haven't forgiven my parents for throwing them away when my little brother started elementary school.

I, too, have been re-reading The Mixed Up Files with fond memories of so many other children's books that I still love and adore... but the two I've been thinking about the most lately are The Secret Summer and Witch's Buttons, both by Ruth Chew.

- The Egypt Game
- The Tattooed Potato and Other Clues
- Active-Enzyme, Lemon-Freshened Junior High School Witch
- The Octagon House
- The Westing Game
- Judy Blume
- Beverly Cleary
Others already mentioned including the Wrinkle in Time series, Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, Chronicles of Narnia, Heinlein's books for kids, Harriet the Spy, the Phantom Tollbooth, the Little House series... And of course now, I'd add Harry Potter to the list, but he wasn't around back when I was reading all of these others for the first time.

My son raves about Holes. I'm going to have to read it so we can talk about it.

My favorites?
A Wrinkle in Time was such a favorite of mine when I was younger. House of Stairs, Lord of the Flies, but I loved my Trixie Belden books, too...oooo...for the (much) younger set--the Junie B. Jones series--hysterically funny books!

As indispensable as Where the Sidewalk Ends and A Light in the Attic are, I don't think "anything by Shel Silverstein" is appropriate children's literature. I seem to remember he got his start publishing bawdy poems in Playboy.

Daniel Manus Pinkwater: Lizard Music; The Snarkout Boys and the Avocado of Death; The Snarkout Boys and the Baconburg Horror; Alan Mendelssohn, Boy From Mars; And anything by louis Sachar, who wrote Holes. Somday Angeline is a favorite, so are all the Wayside School stories.

how about the thief of always by clive barker? that's a riveting read.

also pretty much anything by judy blume, but particularly the superfudge stuff.

alice in wonderland is one of the most amazing stories ever, and the giving tree still brings me to tears at age 28. the time warp trio books are hysterical, captain underpants is a riot, and harry potter rules. don't forget where the wild things are and the dream-eater.

also, i don't know if it's a kid's book, per se, but i read to kill a mockingbird in junior high and loved it.

i'm delirious with glee because my 7 y.o. has already expressed an interest in shakespeare.